The present invention concerns a method for producing a dentist tool formed by an overlay to be used by a dentist in removing tooth structure from a tooth, said method comprising the steps of:
determining a predetermined part of tooth structure to be removed so as to prepare said tooth for further treatment;
determining an overlay fitting said tooth and fitting at least a part of a neighboring tooth of said tooth;
simulating a movement to be followed by a dentist cutting tool in order to remove at least a part of said predetermined part;
determining a first guiding edge within said overlay, said first guiding edge corresponding to said movement so that it is provided to contact said dentist cutting tool following said movement, thereby being provided to guide said dentist cutting tool in a predetermined position, said first guiding edge being part of a guiding means;
producing said determined overlay with said guiding means.
The present invention further concerns a dentist tool to be used by a dentist in removing tooth structure from a tooth of a patient, which tooth is to be prepared for further treatment, said dentist tool comprising:
an overlay having a shape and dimensions so that it is releasably fixable over said tooth and being attachable to that tooth or to at least a part of a neighboring tooth of said tooth;
a first guiding edge within said overlay that is provided to contact a dentist cutting tool following a predetermined movement, said first guiding edge thereby being provided to guide said dentist cutting in a predetermined position.
When a patient needs a crown, bridge, onlay, inlay, veneer, or other restoring or other dental prosthesis and/or aesthetic tooth treatment, conventionally, during an initial office visit, the dentist identifies the needs of the patient and determines an appropriate treatment. During subsequent visits, in case the tooth comprises damaged and/or infected tooth structure, the dentist removes this tooth structure and reconstructs the tooth as much as possible using conventional techniques. Thereafter, the dentist performs the final preparation of the tooth for further treatment by removing tooth material, which is to be interpreted as original tooth structure and reconstructed tooth structure, with a dental cutting tool such as a high-speed drill. Relying upon eyesight and expertise, the dentist uses the drill to shape the tooth in a form that is suitable for further treatment, in particular a form onto which a crown, bridge, onlay, inlay, veneer or other tooth restoring part can be mounted. Then, the dentist takes an impression of the dental arch in which the prepared tooth is located, and sends the impression to the dental laboratory to have the dental technician make the restoration part. Using the impression of the prepared tooth, the dental technician produces a restoration part that matches the color, geometrical and material specifications, and sends it to the dentist. At the patient's final visit, the dentist adjusts the restoration part as necessary before fitting it in place.
A further dentist tool is disclosed in EP1547544. This dentist tool decreases the impact of the experience and expertise of the dentist onto the treatment, and it is used by a dentist in boring an artificial tooth root cavity. In EP1547544, guiding means, formed by a cylindrical hole, for guiding a drill in a straight-forward way, is provided. In such a manner an artificial tooth root cavity can be bored with greater precision even by a less experienced dentist. Moreover a suitable root cavity position can be calculated based on the information processed by the computer, so as to form in the most optimal way a cavity in the jaw bone.
A drawback of the known dentist tool is that it can only be used by a dentist in boring holes into the jaw bone. This dentist tool is not suitable to be used by a dentist in preparing a tooth for further treatment.
A further dentist tool is disclosed in DE4012327, which is considered close prior art. This dentist tool is formed by a template that comprises a guiding edge for guiding a dentist cutting tool along a predetermined movement. The guiding edge is provided at a predetermined height so that besides the position, also the depth of the dentist cutting tool can be guided. DE4012327 furthermore teaches how the dentist can use the template by placing the template in the mouth of the person and, using a moving-plate fixing the tilt of the dentist cutting tool into a predetermined inclination, running with the dentist cutting tool along the guiding edge thereby removing predetermined tooth structure.
A drawback of this known dentist tool is that the tilt is, because of the moving-plate, fixed in a predetermined inclination. Thereby, the dentist tool cannot guide a dentist cutting tool in a complex movement where also tilt variations occur. In particular when working with complex surfaces such as teeth, such complex movements are preferable.